Money Muscle: the choices you make with your finances (income, assets, etc.) around building wealth so that you can live out your dream life
If you have ever been around a career coach, fitness trainer, or nutritionist, you have likely heard the term muscle memory. Building out our money muscle is very similar yet one we all hate to talk about. Admit that during a night out with friends we are willing to share some intimate details of our lives, but what we never like to talk about finances. Especially not in open and honest terms.
So, if we don’t talk about our money with our friends, how are we going to create the money muscle to build wealth and live out our dream lives? If you aren’t one of the lucky few who wins the lottery, or your child is a prodigy sweeping the nation with their brilliant skills, it means we need to start building our money muscle in some other way.
Like any muscle training, you must align your focus with your goals. Here are 3 simple thoughts that can help bring you focus:
1. Stop screwing over future you: We live in a world of instant gratification where we can buy almost anything we want whenever we want. Usually on credit. But here’s the problem, you are making these quick decisions forgetting what you want in the future.
I see it happening all the time. When someone’s spending gets out of hand. They look and see that they own a couple of new luxury bags and bills from a vacation their friends talked them into. And what gets skipped? Savings and investing for retirement.
2. Embrace Risk & Resilience: Making conscious money choices that are focused around your financial goals takes time. And you will fumble and make choices that you regret. Part of building this muscle is being able to realign and refocus on your goals during these moments of setback. When you have these moments make sure you are still aligned with the goals you are working towards. Sometimes when we stumble it means we aren’t really determined to make those dreams a reality. The other side of it is that we are humans that make mistakes and make quick choices.
3. Build your financial team: If you are married, make certain that the 2 of you are aligned on your goals. If you struggle with impulse purchases, find a person who can become your accountability partner to help keep you on track. Be the one to start the financial conversation when out with friends. The reaction may surprise you. And find a good financial advisor to walk with you and guide you towards your future.
